President Trump has taken the war on drugs to narco-terrorists with attacks on high-speed drug boats in the Caribbean ferrying drugs to ultimate destinations in the U.S. Feckless Democrats and their media allies have responded with a counterattack ― against Trump!
The first salvo was a contrived video just before Thanksgiving by six congressional Democrats flaunting their military veteran or intelligence agency credentialss as cover for planting a mutiny mentality among active-duty troops, urging them to refuse to carry out allegedly “illegal orders” from their superiors in the chain of command. (This was followed by appeals for campaign contributions by these politicians who promised to defend troops who defy such orders.) When pressed to give an example of an illegal Trump order none of the gang-of-six would answer when it’s obvious they’re referring to the military attacks on these drug boats, which they oppose.
The second salvo was a Washington Post story on November 28 about the first of these attacks that occurred on September 22. The Post reported ― from unnamed sources ― that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had ordered U.S. forces to “kill everybody” on the boat. The Post has also reported ― again from unnamed sources ― that Admiral Mitch Bradley, commander of the elite Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in Fort Bragg, North Carolina who ordered that attack, later ordered a follow-on missile attack to kill two survivors. Other outlets of the liberal media cartel falsely reported that Hegseth gave that order to Navy SEAL Team 6 to launch the strike on the two survivors. (P.S. Right before they released their video, the gang-of-six posted on billboards the “refuse illegal orders” message directed at special ops troops stationed at Fort Bragg.)
Predictably, Democrats and their media echo chamber have made the death of two narco-terrorists the centerpiece of their narrative, which they’ve crudely named “double-tap.” Rep. Jim Himes, (D-Connecticut) called it: “One of the most troubling things I’ve seen in my time in public service. Two individuals in clear distress, without any means of locomotion, with a destroyed vessel were killed by the United States.” Please. These drug runners weren’t innocent victims on some mission of mercy; they were criminals in this for the money, whose cargo would enrich the evil drug cartels and ruin lives of those on the receiving end. Sending a missile just to kill the last two of them wouldn’t be worth the cost of the missile.
In the calm of reflection, comes the truth of the story correcting the Democrat BS. On December 4, Admiral Bradley went to Capitol Hill for a closed-door classified meeting with members of Congress. He expressly said there had been not been a “kill them all” order nor an order to grant no quarter, and that Bradley and Hegseth had watched the first strike together after which Hegseth departed. So, Hegseth wasn’t even there to order a second strike. Bradley said the survivors were attempting to continue their drug run and were still considered combatants. With other enemy vessels in the area to lend aid, he personally ordered the second strike.
Under international law, these drug runners are “unlawful combatants” engaged in armed conflict, like members of other terrorists groups. Unlike actual soldiers of a nation, they have no Prisoner of War protections, are outside the traditional rules of war, and aren’t protected under the Genva Conventions. The Pentagon war manual regards them as subject to attack.
Yes, the Constitution reserves the power to declare war solely to Congress. Nevertheless, President Thomas Jefferson, with no congressional declaration, dispatched the U.S. Navy and Marines to Tripoli to vanquish the Barbery Pirates who seized the cargo of our merchant ships, imprisoned their crews, and held them for ransom. Since World War II, numerous U.S. presidents have similarly waged undeclared wars. It can be a gray area and the Supreme Court may ultimately decide this case. But the demand of Democrats that the U.S. Navy should “stop and frisk” these drug boats instead of blowing them out of the water is a preposterous tactic for battling narco-terrorists and drug cartels. And blowing them up serves as a good deterrent.
With their customary hysteria, Democrats have declared these confrontations “war crimes.” Nazi military officers at the Nuremberg trials after World War II were convicted of war crimes for exterminating millions of innocent civilians in concentration camps. Shame on the gang-of-six for planting the thought in the minds of our troops that fighting narco-terrorists is the equivalent of a real war crime.
Longtime KOA radio talk host and columnist for the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News Mike Rosen now writes for Complete Colorado.
